Unseasonably warm weather has our fair city projected to hit 90 degrees this afternoon. Thats right, 90 degrees, in the first week of June. The last 3 weeks have been noting short of remarkable in the heights of temperature reached and lack of precipitation. After whining all winter, I was more than happy to don shorts and a tank top and glory in the warmth, but now I am beginning to worry that the garden isn’t getting that good dose of rain we usually get in May/June to take it through the reliably dry months of July-September.
The warmth has pushed my Oregon Trail Shelling Peas into an abundance of blooms within a matter of days. Likely a good thing as I didn’t set up an appropriate trellising system for them this year, and last year’s cold spring had them growing to heights of almost 6 feet before setting a single flower. This year’s heat promises to keep them at a more manageable height while still promising a harvest.
The Mr. Big peas have already set pods (a 60 day vs. 100 day variety) and boy are they tasty (and short!). Dahl the chicken has gone broody again. This is the second time this year. I am contemplating either finding some fertilized eggs for her this time, or perhaps picking up a chick from the feed store for her to mother. She might as well make herself useful if she is just going to sit on her butt (belly?) all day. Mother Earth had an article this month in which the author had (successfully) experimented with setting a bunch of cornish cross (meat) chicks under a broody laying hen, and let the hen raise the meat birds instead of fussing with a brood box and separating the birds. It’s got me thinking with the red hen just sitting there….
We are scheduled to head up to Laura’s this weekend to help in the processing of the 79 meat chickens she has been raising for our household, her own freezer and several other local families. Thankfully the forecast has adjusted down to the 70’s for Saturday.
Gary and my father weren’t so lucky with the weather earlier this week. My dad came over to go through the bee box with us and do the weekly check. I was more than happy to pass off the responsibility to him and Gary, letting them crawl into the hot monkey suits on an 88 degree day. The bees continue to be incredibly docile, further making me wish I had just bought a veil instead of the full getup. They are thriving in this heat and put on a daily show for us.
I think I am off my little mini-vacation from blogging now, and have more stories to tell at some point. The next few months have incredibly filled up with various engagements, celebrations and appointments so I suspect I won’t be nearly as regular in posting as when nothing is going on. It feels good though, I love this time of year and things are happening!
3 responses so far ↓
1 Celina // Jul 17, 2015 at 11:22 am
Karen that was a very rude response! Not enoeyrve is as educated as you are. This blog is for those who are new and experienced. Comments like yours will make those who are new not want to ask their questions. All level of questions should be taken seriously.Liz Please don’t feel stupid for your question. It is a common question that I have answered lots of times. I have had hens that will always lay in the nest and others that I have to train to. If you have a hen that likes to hide eggs try to take away all temptations for them. Things like boards propped against something, potted plants, high grass or other dark small areas. I even had a hen squeeze through a small gap to get out of her run to lay the egg and then squeeze back through for dinner time. With all temptation taken away they will be naturally drawn to the nest box. After some time you can slowly add temptations back in if you want and see how they do. Also another thing to notice is if she is building nests in the same type of material. I had one hen always try to nest in tall grass. I switched my next bedding to shredded paper and she was more than willing to lay in her next box. She wanted something that she could form and shavings wouldn’t do for her. For free range hens I would say to try and temporarily confine them to a run and coop. After time when they are use to laying in their coop put them back to free range. Note I have only had success with this when it was the actual coop and not just a different one. So if you have a large number of chickens it might not work for you.Hope this helps and good luck.
2 Ambica // Oct 23, 2015 at 10:36 am
Je li pragn liby my go atoli odmawia sobie, nie pr dzej mo emy posawnoti si na szczeg lne aplikacje komputerowe, przez wzgl d kt rym b dzie wolno o wiele wygodniej i pr dzej poleca faktury VAT, za wiadczenia, zeznania podatkowe czy te bilanse. Albowiem przewa nie przygotowywanym dokumentem w ka dym przedsi biorstwie jest kompozycja VAT, przyjrzyjmy si bli ej temu, co b dzie wolno sprawi w jej losie, a eby dzia alno korporacji sta o si do tej pory wydajniejsze. Przede wszystkim trzeba wskaza , e a do dyspozycji dysponujemy wielo produkt w, na skutek kt rym fakturowanie b dzie mog o egzystowa jeszcze atwiejsze. S owo r wnie program pojedyncze, przeznaczone przed chwil a do wystawiania faktur, ale i damy rad sprawi sobie w takie systemy informatyczne, na skutek jakim stanie si jest dozwolone zaj si zarz dzaniem wszystkimi zapasami w przedsi biorstwie, co umo liwia na jeszcze prze o ony rotacja wiedzy oraz efektywniejsz czynnikiem.
3 1oakland // Jan 12, 2022 at 1:39 pm
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